The article says “how illegal migrants cope financially during their long journeys to and through Europe has been revealed by the Slovenian site Nova24”.

It adds that “no identity documents are required to receive or use the cards”.

“The information comes from a source within the Croatian police, which states that the migrants are well-equipped with newly purchased, high-quality boots, hiking clothes, smartphones and even weapons.”

The article is illustrated by two photos. One is of smiling young black men giving each other the high-five. This seems to be astock photo first published online by a Kenyan website in April 2018.

The second is of a MasterCard debit card bearing the EU and UNHCR logos. This was taken directly from aMay 2018 UNHCR report on the emergency response to the refugee crisis in Greece.

What are these cards?

But the story mixes up an existing UNHCR programme and a separate humanitarian aid partnership between the philanthropist billionaire George Soros and credit card provider MasterCard, according to aSnopes fact-check that rated itfalse.

MasterCard has also sponsored two similar but separate aid programmes. The first is a2016 partnership with the humanitarian groupMercy Corps, in which prepaid debit cards were given to refugees traveling through Serbia, as well as to refugees and migrants traveling through countries in Europe, Africa, and Asia.

The second is aMasterCard partnership with George Soros to create a “standalone entity” called Humanity Ventures. The partnership seeks to provide entrepreneurial and private sector solutions to problems created by the migrant crisis but does not actually distribute any debit cards to migrants.

Why cash (debit) cards instead of aid?

According to the Mercy Corps, the key aim of the cashless assistance programme is “to provide the capacity for people to act independently… the ability to spend money on what they need… with dignity and more control”.

The UNHCR has said that access to cash empowers refugees “by giving them the choice over how to meet their most immediate needs. Freed from having to queue or travel to receive one-size-fits-all aid, people can buy their own food, fuel, clothes, medicine or pay the rent based on their personal priorities. In this way, refugees contribute directly to local economies and foster positive relations with host communities”. – Africa Check (31/01/19)

Africa Check teams up with Facebook

Africa Check has partnered with Facebook to combat fake news and false information on the social platform. This spotcheck is part of the initiative.

As part of its third-party fact-checking programme, Facebook allows its partners to see public articles, pictures or videos that have been flagged as potentially inaccurate.

Content rated as “false” by fact-checkers will be downgraded in news feeds. This means fewer people will see it.

You can help us identify fake news and false information on Facebook. This guide explains how.

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For democracy to function, public figures need to be held to account for what they say. The claims they make need to be checked, openly and impartially. Africa Check is an independent, non-partisan organisation which assesses claims made in the public arena using journalistic skills and evidence drawn from the latest online tools, readers, public sources and experts, sorting fact from fiction and publishing the results.